After failing his physical with the Yankees, Hideki Okajima returned to Japan over the weekend, signing with the Softbank Hawks. He’ll bring with him the 17th best ERA+ among all major league relievers to throw at least 200 innings:

Obviously, that’s a silly list — many relievers not included have had better five-year runs than some of these short-career guys — but it does sort of demonstrate the quality of Okajima’s innings. My favorite Okajima factoid: he gave up a homer to the very first batter he faced (John Buck) in his major league debut and then went 21 2/3 innings without giving up another run

Okajima ended up 17-8 with a 3.11 ERA over 246 1/3 innings in five seasons with the Red Sox. He also had a 2.11 ERA in 21 1/3 innings postseason innings. And he did it all for about $7.5 million, which is less than Soriano will make with the Yankees this year alone.

Rapada, who turns 31 next month, is expected to get a minor league contract. The sidearmer had a 6.06 ERA in 16 1/3 innings for the Orioles last season, but he did hold lefties to a .104 average in 49 at-bats. The problem is that right-handers were 9-for-13 with two homers against him.

It’s the usual trend for Rapada and why he’s never been able to establish himself in the majors. In 78 lifetime appearances, lefties have hit .153 against him, while righties have come in at .359.

Barring a late trade or a surprising spring from Rapada or Rule 5 pick Cesar Cabral, there’s a good chance the Yankees will go with just one lefty reliever, that being Boone Logan.

UPDATE: No word yet on the cause of the failed physical, but the Yankees have released Okajima.

==========

Hideki Okajima, who signed a minor-league contract with the Yankees in December, has failed his physical exam according to David Waldstein of the New York Times.

Waldstein speculates that the Yankees will void his contract and make the 36-year-old reliever a free agent again, although it’s also possible that they could simply alter the terms of the contract and keep him around in the minors.

Okajima pitched his way out of the Red Sox’s plans after three seasons as a top-notch setup man, but was excellent at Triple-A last year with a 2.29 ERA and 49/8 K/BB ratio in 51 innings.